- Born
- Died
- Birth nameLynne Maria Frederick
- Nicknames
- Lynnie
- English Rose
- Lynne Sellers
- Sellers Widow
- Lynn Frederick
- Little Lynne
- Height5′ 2½″ (1.59 m)
- Lynne Frederick was a talented British actress of the 1970s. She had a unique combination of good looks and charm which captivated audiences for a decade. Although best known as the fourth and final wife of British comedian Peter Sellers, Lynne has developed a cult following in recent years. Before Kate Winslet and Emma Watson, there was Lynne Frederick.
Lynne Wagner Harding Frederick was born in Hillingdon, Uxbridge, UK, to parents Iris and Andrew. Her father left when she was young, and was raised by her grandmother and mother, who worked for Thames Television. Lynne attended Notting Hill and Ealing High School and originally intended to become a physics and mathematics teacher. Lynne was discovered by film director Cornel Wilde at Thames Television while posing for some camera test shots. Lynne's youthful and dramatic beauty immediately struck Wilde. After interviewing hundreds of girls, he decided Lynne would be perfect for his film. Lynne received a phone call while at school preparing for her exams. Her mother said Wilde wanted her for his film and had two hours to decide if she wanted to take the role and leave school to pursue an acting career. After much thought, Lynne decided to try acting and accepted the role.
Despite no previous experience, Lynne got her very first acting job at her first audition. Her debut was in the 1970 British-American apocalyptic science fiction film No Blade of Grass (1970). Her next and more prestigious role came as Tsar Nicholas's second eldest daughter, Tatiana, in the 1971 Oscar-winning British film Nicholas and Alexandra (1971). In her next role, Henry VIII and His Six Wives (1972), she played the ill-fated fifth wife of Henry VIII, Catherine Howard. Her adaptation of Howard made Tudor cinema history as Lynne was the first actress to portray Howard from a historically accurate and sympathetic point of view.
Lynne continued to work in films, with a supporting role in the now-cult film Vampire Circus (1972). Her most well-known screen role came in the 1972 family film The Amazing Mr. Blunden (1972). For this role, she won the very first London Evening Standard British Film Award for Best New Coming Actress. In 1974, she appeared in the science fiction thriller Phase IV (1974), for which she was required to learn an American accent. Although not successful during its initial release, Phase IV gained a cult following in the years that followed due to its airing on late-night television.
Lynne co-starred with Italian actor Fabio Testi in two back-to-back films as his love interest. The first was the very graphic Italian spaghetti western The Four of the Apocalypse... (1975), followed by Red Coat (1975). Lynne then appeared in two romantic Spanish films, El vicio y la virtud (1975) and Largo retorno (1975). Her acting credits weren't limited to film; she appeared in various shows and movies made for TV over the decade. Lynne returned to the horror film with a role in the 1976 slasher, Schizo (1976). Her most important film role came in the Oscar-nominated historical drama, Voyage of the Damned (1976).
A year later, Lynne married fellow actor Peter Sellers. She would make her final film appearance alongside him in The Prisoner of Zenda (1979). Sadly, their relationship became turbulent. Rumours of drug and health issues plagued them. Further controversy followed after Sellers' tragic death on 24 July 1980 (one day before Lynne's 26th birthday) when Lynne was named the beneficiary of nearly his entire estate while his children, whom Sellers had been estranged from for many years, received hardly anything. Despite pleas from Sellers' friends, Lynne didn't give Sellers' children any further settlements due to her rocky relationship with them. The British public and film industry began to turn against Lynne after Sellers' death, and her career started to plummet. Despite the blacklisting which followed, Lynne was very protective of Sellers' name and reputation. She even won £1.475 million in a lawsuit against the makers of the Trail of the Pink Panther (1982), a film of Sellers released posthumously, claiming the film tarnished her husband's memory.
Lonely, depressed, and desperate for companionship, the young widow married the charismatic British media personality David Frost six months after Sellers' death. Lynne's supposed eagerness to remarry shortly after her first husband's death virtually robbed her of any last shred of public sympathy.
Although Lynne and David appeared to be a happily married couple to the public, their marriage was destructive and turbulent behind closed doors. While married to Frost, she suffered at least one miscarriage, which put a strain on their already rocky marriage. Ultimately, their marriage ended in divorce after 17 months.
Following her divorce from Frost, Frederick fled from Britain to America where she met surgeon and heart specialist Barry Unger, whom she married on Christmas, 1982. The following year, Frederick bore her only child, Cassie, with whom she had a close relationship. Her marriage to Unger ended in divorce in 1991.
In the later years of her life, Frederick live in Los Angeles, where she lived in a house with her daughter, of whom she shared custody.
In the final years of her life, Lynne's health spiraled downward as she struggled with alcoholism and bouts of depression. Rumors of chronic drug addiction, clinical depression, failed rehab treatments, and suicide attempts were common tabloid reports of her in later years.
The wear and tear of the struggles in her life took a toll on her appearance. Her weight ballooned, her face became sunken and bloated, and her hair now cropped short and damaged. Rumor had it that when the paparazzi stood outside her house trying to get photos of Lynne, there were several occasions where she would walk past them unnoticed as the photographers didn't recognize her drastically different appearance in contrast to her once-youthful appearance.
On the morning of 27 April, 1994, Frederick's lifeless body was discovered by her mother, Iris, in her home. Immediately following Frederick's death, the Fleet Street tabloids engaged in a firestorm of negative press accusing Frederick of being an alcoholic and cocaine addict. It was even reported the cause of her death due to cocaine and alcohol. Although the exact cause of Frederick's death hasn't been publicly disclosed, her mother revealed in Hello Magazine that Lynne's death had been caused by natural causes due to a seizure in her sleep, although this has been disputed by some people, seizures frequently kill people, who stop drinking without medical help.
For many years, Lynne Frederick's legacy remained tainted and was seldom, if ever mentioned. But in recent years, her films have resurfaced to a new generation, and she's been given a new fan base and cult following. Although she won't be remembered as a big name in films, her glowing beauty holds an enduring fascination amongst cinema fans. She's a symbol of the harsh world of the entertainment industry.- IMDb Mini Biography By: Foster Hitchman (Fixed but U.N. Owen)
- SpousesBarry S. Unger(December 25, 1982 - 1991) (divorced, 1 child)David Frost(January 25, 1981 - June 18, 1982) (divorced)Peter Sellers(February 18, 1977 - July 24, 1980) (his death)
- ChildrenCassie Cecilia Unger
- ParentsAndrew Frederick
- Effervescent smile and youthful, delicate, feminine features
- Long flowing brown hair and enchanting expressive meadow green eyes
- Soft, lilting voice
- Often played the girl next door, a princess, an ingenue, or a teenager. Most of her characters were usually meek, soft spoken, or angelic.
- Her small, delicate physical presence
- Following her own death, Frederick left $250,000 to be split between the British Heart Foundation and the Middlesex Hospital in London as tribute to her late husband, Peter Sellers (who died of a heart attack). As a sign of gratitude, the Middlesex Hospital hung up a plaque thanking both Sellers and Frederick for their generous donation.
- Lynne Frederick's funeral was held on 5 May 1994 in Santa Monica, California. Attendees at her private funeral and memorial service included her daughter Cassie Unger, her ex-husband Barry Unger, her mother Iris Frederick, her Nicholas and Alexandra (1971) co-star Fiona Fullerton, and other personal family and friends of Frederick. Her ex-husband David Frost and Sellers' children did not attend. Her funeral and memorial service were concealed from the public and members of the press were banned. The press later made a mockery of how few people attended her funeral, which her mother Iris later claimed was her daughter's wish. In an exclusive interview with Hello Magazine in 1995, Frederick's mother stated "that's what she requested in her will. She [Lynne Frederick] was a very private person.".
- Had one daughter, Cassie Cecilia Unger (born 21 May 1983) by her third husband, Barry S. Unger. Following her mother's death when she was 10 years old, Cassie inherited all income from Peter Sellers' estate, including royalties from his work. Cassie was brought up mainly by her maternal grandmother Iris Frederick (born 17 May 1928, died 11 January 2006). Cassie graduated from UCLA in 2009 with a master's degree in English and continues to lead a peaceful, productive, and private life in great anonymity.
- Peter Sellers biographer, Roger Lewis, claims that of all of Sellers's wives, Lynne Frederick was the most poorly treated. Frederick spent much time acting as nurse to Sellers as his health began to spiral downward in the final years of his life. Despite the fact that Sellers was an increasingly impatient and hostile person to be around, Frederick remained by his side. Rumor has it that Frederick suffered much physical and mental abuse at the hands of Sellers.
- Spent nine months living with her Nicholas and Alexandra (1971) co-stars Michael Jayston, Janet Suzman, Roderic Noble, Ania Marson, Candace Glendenning, and Fiona Fullerton. The film's director, Franklin J. Schaffner, wanted the actors to establish a close family like relationship to make their performances more authentic. According to press reports at the time, Schaffner had noticed that they had all grown close and got so caught up in the story that the actors seemed like a real family. During the execution scene, Frederick and the other young actresses reportedly got so hysterical in between takes that shooting had to stop for a brief period of time for them to calm down.
- [on her career] I'm the sort of person who really takes it as it comes. If it comes nicely, then that's lovely; if it doesn't, then it doesn't. If I don't get work then I sort of think about doing something else. Of course it's getting better and it's lovely.
- I think women are just as capable of ruling people and looking after our affairs as men are. Sometimes possibly better because women have a level of sensibility and sensitivity as well, which possibly men don't sometimes.
- [on same sex relationships] With homosexuality and lesbianism, I just don't think you can put a ban on it, I don't think you can say it's wrong. I think people should live how they want to live. I don't think it should be illegal.
- [on her marriage to Peter Sellers] I was his mother, his sister, his daughter, his lover, his wife and he became for me my father, my lover, my friend.
- [on how she got into acting] I was sitting in my class at school a few days later struggling with my Latin exercises, when I was told I was wanted urgently on the telephone. I went to take the call and was told by my mother and Mrs. Malone that the part was mine if I wanted it and I had two hours in which to decide! It was all up to me. I had to choose whether to forsake my exams, which were coming along, and do the film, probably taking up acting as a career, even though I originally wanted to be a teacher, or forget the picture and concentrate on my studies. When the bell rang for the final period, I had made up my mind to take the opportunity and accept the role.
- The Prisoner of Zenda (1979) - $4,166 .67 /week + $2,500 joint living expenses with co-star and spouse, Peter Sellers.
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